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| My Boxer x Robbie after a walk and play on a very hot day! |
In the hot weather your dog can get listless and not want to eat as much as he/she normally does. Your dog can also get dehydrated and low on electrolytes.
The following three recipes are fun, simple and very healthy options to...
- Perk your dog up;
- Boost his/her immune system, and;
- Deliver great nutrition and hydration all at the same time!
Yogurt and Fruit Smoothies
If you think all dairy products are bad for your dog, think again! Fruit too!
Yogurt, kefir and cottage cheese provide a multitude of benefits for your dog’s health – you can read about the many benefits hereand here.
Fresh and frozen fruit also offer multiple health benefits for your dog.
- Many people think that giving a dog fruit will give the dog diarrhea. In actual fact high quality soluble fibre helps prevent diarrhea and constipation. You can read more about that here. Eating fresh fruit and vegetables also plays an important role in:
- Helping to boost the immune system;
- Helping the body eliminate toxins;
- Keeping organs, eyes, teeth etc. healthy;
- Preventing colon cancer;
- Reducing the risk of developing heart and vascular problems, stroke and cancer;
- Reducing the risk of inflamed anal glands (which result in ‘scudding’, burst glands and discharge);
- Aiding in good oral health; as does yogurt and kefir.
The following treats can be given as a snack or added to your dog’s main meal. You can freeze and store portions in ice cube trays or you can serve fresh in a bowl.
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| My German Shepperd x Husky Sarah after playing with Robbie in the meadow |
If you have multiple dogs like I do you can expand these recipes by doubling, tripling the recipe etc. as required…
Yogurt (and/or Kefir or Cottage Cheese) and Berry Smoothie
- 1 cup plain all natural yogurt – see herefor guidelines on selecting a good yogurt;
- You can also replace the yogurt with 1 cup cottage cheese, or;
- Use ½ cup yogurt, ½ cup cottage cheese or kefir, or;
- Use 1/3 cup yogurt, 1/3 cup kefir, 1/3cup cottage cheese;
- 2 cups frozen berries;
- Use one or a combination of the following;
- Blackberries;
- Blueberries;
- Cherries;
- Raspberries;
- Strawberries;
- Pour the yogurt (cottage cheese and/or kefir) into a food processor or blender;
- Add the berries;
- Optional ingredients:
- 1 to 2 tbsp raw unpasteurized organic honey, make sure you read this article first though;
- 1 tsp Ceylon cinnamon – you can read about some of the health benefits here
- Blend all ingredients together;
- Serve in a bowl, or;
- Use a spoon to put the smoothie mixture into ice cube trays or popsicle trays;
- Put the ice cube or popsicle tray in the freezer, allow to freeze and then serve as desired.
Suggested Serving Size
- Small size dogs and cats - 1 tsp to 1 tbs
- Medium size dogs - 1/8 cup
- Large dogs - 1/3 cup
- Extra large dogs - 1/2 cup
Yogurt (and/or Kefir or Cottage Cheese) Banana and Pineapple, Tahini Smoothie
- 1 cup plain all natural yogurt – see herefor guidelines on selecting a good yogurt;
- You can also replace the yogurt with 1 cup cottage cheese, or;
- Use ½ cup yogurt, ½ cup cottage cheese or kefir, or;
- Use 1/3 cup yogurt, 1/3 cup kefir, 1/3cup cottage cheese;
- 2 cups frozen banana slices;
- ½ cup frozen pineapple chunks;
- Optional ingredients:
- 2 to 4 tbs all natural organic tahini
- 1 to 2 tbsp raw unpasteurized organic honey, make sure you read this article first though;
- 1 tsp Ceylon cinnamon – you can read about some of the health benefits here
- Blend all ingredients together;
- Serve in a bowl, or;
- Use a spoon to put the smoothie mixture into ice cube trays or popsicle trays;
- Put the ice cube or popsicle tray in the freezer, allow to freeze and then serve as desired.
Suggested Serving Size
- Small size dogs and cats - 1 tsp to 1 tbs
- Medium size dogs - 1/8 cup
- Large dogs - 1/3 cup
- Extra large dogs - 1/2 cup
Additional healthy and safe fruit choices…
- Apples (remove the seeds, as they contain arsenic which is toxic to dogs)
- Apricots
- Avocado in small amounts is OK for dogs. Avocados contain persin - a fungicidal toxin. When a dog is fed large amounts of the fruit vomiting and diarreha can result from overdose of persin. The pit of the avocado is toxic to dogs and should never be consumed by dogs.
- Cantaloupe
- Canary Melon
- Clementines
- Cranberries
- Coconut (fresh or dry non sweetened, shredded)Grapefruit
- Honeydew Melon
- Kiwi
- Mangos (remove the pit)
- Nectarines (remove the pit)
- Oranges
- Papaya
- Peaches (remove the pit)
- Pears (remove the seeds)
- Plums
- Thimble berries
- Watermelon
Chicken or Beef Stock Smoothie with Vegetables or Fruit
Green Leafy Smoothie as a Treat or as a Topping on Food
- To select the vegetables that you would like to use see the list of safe vegetables provided in this article.
- Chop the greens either by hand or in a food processor and mix a little into your dogs food, or;
- You can toss the greens into a blender with some homemade chicken stock (see recipe below) and make a smoothie - store in the refrigerator for up to three days and just add to your dogs food once a day...
- X-Small Dogs and Cats - 1 tbs;
- Small Dogs and Cats – 1/8 cup;
- Medium size dogs – ¼ cup;
- Large dogs – 1/3 to ½ cup.
Fruit Smoothie as a Treat or Topping on Food
If you want to give your dog fresh or frozen fruit in a nutrient rich smoothie...
Chicken or Beef Stock Chilled in a Bowl or Ice Cubes
If you want to give your dog fresh or frozen fruit in a nutrient rich smoothie...
- To select the fruit that you would like to use see the list of safe to use fruit provided above.
- Toss the fruit into a blender with the homemade chicken stock recipe provided just below or use kefir or yogurt to make a smoothie - store in the refrigerator for up to three days and just add to your dogs food once a day...
- X-Small Dogs and Cats - 1 tbs;
- Small Dogs and Cats – 1/8 cup;
- Medium size dogs – ¼ cup;
- Large dogs – 1/3 to ½ cup.
Chicken or Beef Stock Chilled in a Bowl or Ice Cubes
If it’s really hot out and your dog’s appetite is suppressed by the heat, you need to make sure your dog is staying hydrated, it’s even better if the liquid offered provides nutritive value.
Provided your dog is not allergic to chicken, turkey, duck, beef etc. you can make a quick and simple broth that you can offer to your dog in the form of ice cubes or as a special drink in a bowl.
Just make sure that you only give your dog as much of the broth as he/she will drink at a time as broth should not be left to sit at room temperature for more than a few minutes. You don’t want salmonella forming in the broth!
I make a big batch (I have ten dogs :>) and then store the resulting broth in glass jars in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. You can freeze it in larger quantities as well. I add the broth to my dogs meals but it can also be used as noted above!
- Take a piece of chicken i.e. (a leg with back attached) or beef bone with meat attached (or other meat bone as desired) put in a pot of water;
- Add:
- ½ tbs of sage;
- ½ tbs of basil;
- ½ tbs of rosemary;
- You can toss in a few carrots and or parsnips if you want to;
- Cook on a low heat;
- When cooked remove chicken and carrots/parsnips;
- Allow to cool a bit;
- Cut the veggies and the cooked chicken or other meat (remove the bones) in small pieces and either give it to your dog as an additional treat or add it back into the stock.
- Pour stock into glass jars and store in the refrigerator;
- Chill and serve in a bowl as a special drink on hot days or use it to add moisture to your dogs food at meal time;
- Pour stock into ice cube trays if you want to give it as a crunchy, cold hydrating treat.
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